Acute stress disorder and job burnout in primary and secondary school teachers during the COVID-19 pandemic: The moderating effect of sense of control.

The study aim was to examine the relationship between acute stress disorder and job burnout among primary and secondary school teachers, and to explore the moderating effect of sense of control on this relationship. A total of 751 teachers completed self-report questionnaires during the COVID-19 pandemic. The results showed that acute stress disorder, emotional exhaustion, and depersonalization were significantly lower in female teachers than in male teachers. Age was positively associated with acute stress disorder and negatively associated with inefficacy. Acute stress disorder was significantly and positively associated with emotional exhaustion and depersonalization dimensions of job burnout. The relation between acute stress disorder and inefficacy was moderated by sense of control: acute stress disorder was positively associated with inefficacy when the sense of control was strong and was negatively associated with inefficacy when the sense of control was weak. These findings demonstrate that acute stress disorder is a risk factor for job burnout, and that sense of control is a protective factor for some aspects of job burnout. However, in individuals with a strong sense of control, acute stress disorder is associated with greater inefficacy, suggesting that sense of control can both positively and negatively affect burnout.

Pandemic Exposure, Post-traumatic Stress Disorder, Conflict Behaviors, and Online Aggressive Behaviors Among College Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Examining the Moderating Role of Gender.

The COVID-19 pandemic impacts people's mental health and behaviors, but the influence mechanism between pandemic exposure, conflict behaviors, and online aggressive behaviors during the COVID-19 outbreak remains unclear. This study will address this gap. Data were collected from 1,153 college students in an online survey that included an pandemic experiences scale, a post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) scale, a conflict behaviors scale, and an online aggressive behaviors scale. Structural equation modeling and multi-group comparisons were used to analyze the data. Pandemic exposure positively predicted conflict and online aggressive behaviors through hyperarousal symptoms, and negatively predicted these behaviors through intrusive symptoms. The mediating roles of avoidance and negative alterations in cognition and mood symptoms in the relations between pandemic exposure and conflict behaviors and online aggressive behaviors were non-significant. Among male students, pandemic exposure directly predicted conflict and online aggressive behaviors, but for female students, pandemic exposure indirectly influenced these behaviors through intrusive and hyperarousal symptoms. The intrusive and hyperarousal symptoms play mediating roles in the relations between pandemic exposure and conflict behaviors and online aggressive behaviors. Gender plays a moderating role in the above mediating mechanism.

How does parent-child communication affects posttraumatic stress disorder and growth in adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic? The mediating roles of self-compassion and disclosure.

BACKGROUND: Research suggests that family factors play an important role in adolescent posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and posttraumatic growth (PTG). Parent-child communication has attracted particular attention. However, it remains unclear whether parent-child communication affects PTSD and PTG via unique or shared underlying mechanisms. The study aim was to examine the effect of parent-child communication on PTSD and PTG via self-compassion and self-disclosure. METHODS: Self-report questionnaires were administered to 683 adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic. RESULTS: Open parent-child communication was positively associated with PTG and negatively associated with PTSD via two 1-step indirect paths of self-compassion and self-disclosure, and by one 2-step indirect path of self-compassion to self-disclosure. Problematic parent-child communication was negatively associated with PTG and positively associated with PTSD via two 1-step indirect paths of self-compassion and self-disclosure. LIMITATIONS: First, pandemics differ from other disasters, generalizing these findings to other traumatized populations must be cautious. Then, this was a cross-sectional study, so longitudinal effects could not be examined and causal relationships cannot be confirmed. CONCLUSIONS: Different types of parent-child communication have different influencing mechanisms on PTSD and PTG. Therefore, distinct intervention strategies are needed targeted to these two psychological reactions.

Aggression and Non-Suicidal Self-Injury among Depressed Youths: The Mediating Effect of Resilience.

BACKGROUND: The global spread of COVID-19 not only exerted an enormous impact on the public in different countries but also aggravated depression among youths. The aggressive tendencies of depressed individuals can harm their body and life and threaten those of others. The aggressive and non-suicidal self-injurious behaviors of depressed youths may seriously affect their physical and psychological health if not identified and mediated promptly. METHOD: A total of 875 young respondents (including college students, community youths, migrant workers, and so on) from three provinces in China were surveyed in 2020 using a depression scale, non-suicidal self-injury scale, aggression scale, and resilience scale. RESULTS: Depression, non-suicidal self-injury, and aggression are significantly higher among the members of the depression group compared with the members of the healthy control group (P<0.001), and the resilience of the members of the former group is remarkably lower than that of the members of the latter group (P<0.001). Aggression among the depressed youths exhibits a significant positive correlation with non-suicidal self-injury (r= 0.43, P<0.01), whereas aggression (r= -0.18, P<0.05) and non-suicidal self-injury (r= -0.20, P<0.05) demonstrates significant negative correlations with resilience. The resilience of the youths in the depression group plays a partial mediating role in the relationship between aggression and non-suicidal self-injury. CONCLUSION: The more aggressive the behaviors of the depressed youths, the more serious their non-suicidal self-injurious symptoms. Furthermore, resilience plays a partial mediating role in the relationship between aggression and non-suicidal self-injury.

Social support and acute stress symptoms (ASSs) during the COVID-19 outbreak: deciphering the roles of psychological needs and sense of control.

Background: A cute stress symptoms (ASSs) are likely to be a common mental health problem in the acute period following the 2019 novel coronavirus pneumonia (COVID-19) outbreak. To address this risk, substantial social support has been provided to relieve ASSs during the COVID-19 outbreak. However, the effectiveness of these support methods for relieving ASSs has not yet been assessed. Objective: The current study sought to examine the underlying mechanisms by which social support relieves ASSs, among primary and secondary school teachers. Method: A sample of 751 primary and secondary school teachers was selected to answer self-reported questionnaires regarding ASSs, social support, psychological needs, and the sense of control. Results: Structural equation modelling revealed that social support had a non-significant direct relationship with ASSs, and a significant indirect relationship with reduced ASSs via the needs for autonomy and relatedness, and via the paths from three types of psychological needs to the sense of control. Conclusion: These findings suggest that social support can play a relieving role in ASSs when the support satisfies individuals' psychological needs and improves their sense of control. To alleviate ASSs among primary and secondary school teachers, more attention should be paid to satisfying their specific psychological needs and improving their sense of control.

Antecedentes: Es probable que los síntomas de estrés agudo (SEAs) sean un problema de salud mental frecuente en el periodo agudo que sigue al nuevo brote de neumonía por coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19). Para enfrentar este riesgo, se ha brindado un considerable soporte social para aliviar los SEAs durante el brote del COVID-19. Sin embargo, aún no se han evaluado la efectividad de estos métodos de soporte para aliviar los SEAs.Objetivo: Para cubrir esta brecha, este estudio buscó evaluar los mecanismos subyacentes mediante los cuales el soporte social alivia los SEAs en profesores de escuelas primarias y secundarias.Método: Se tomó una muestra de 751 profesores de escuelas primarias y secundarias para que respondieran cuestionarios de auto-reporte relacionadas con SEAs, soporte social, necesidades psicológicas y la sensación de control.Resultados: El modelo de ecuaciones estructurales reveló que el soporte social tenía una relación directa, no significativa, con los SEAs; y que tenía una relación significativa indirecta con una reducción de los SEAs a través de las necesidades de autonomía y relación, y a través de las vías de tres tipos de necesidades psicológicas de la sensación de control.Conclusiones: Estos hallazgos sugieren que el soporte social puede desempeñar un papel de alivio sobre los SEAs cuando el soporte satisface las necesidades psicológicas de los individuos y mejora su sensación de control. Para aliviar los SEAs entre los profesores de escuelas primarias y secundarias, se debe prestar más atención en satisfacer sus necesidades específicas y mejorar su sensación de control.